Holiday Arc part 2 - New Year's Eve
by VegaLume-San
Summary: Duo and Heero spend a quiet evening reacquainting. part 2 in the Holiday Arc. You may wish to read part 1 - Christmas, first.


Disclaimer: I do not own the G-Boys they belong to some other very lucky people, I do however like to play with them and I do promise to put them back when I am done. Not for profit, just for fun.

Title: The Holiday Arc part 2 – New Year's Eve

Author: Vega-Lume

Note: You may need to read the Christmas story (part 1) to understand some of what is going on in this story.

Warnings for the entire Arc: Yaoi, OOC-nes, sap, humor, a smidge of angst and mention of citrus

Beta: none

Pairing: 1+2x1 (or however you want to put it)

For Shenlong (Deb)

Note: I know that this is a couple of days late but the muse demanded that I work on the other holidays first. I started Thanksgiving and next Christmas, finished St. Patrick's Day, and Valentine's Day, and was half way through the 4th of July before the muse let me finish this one, now all I have to do is figure out what it wants me to do for Halloween and I'll be all set.

New Year's Eve

By Vel

"Thank you," the young woman said as she pocketed her tip then tucked the insulated carrier under her arm, "Happy New year."

"Same to you," Duo replied and watched the girl hurry to her car and drive away before shutting the door. He carried the pizza through to the bedroom and climbed in next to Heero.

"Is it still snowing?" Heero asked as he spread out a towel so the grease from pizza box wouldn't stain the bedspread.

"Yep, it looks like it's going to stick too," Duo replied. "I'm not looking forward to starting the New Year by shoveling snow."

"I'll do it," Heero stated as he settled against the headboard with the pizza on his lap, "You have a flight to catch."

Duo didn't miss the odd tone in Heero's voice. "I'm not leaving until the 3rd," Duo reminded him, "And I'll be back by the 8th, weather allowing."

"I know," Heero replied but he still sounded a little worried.

"I love you and I am coming back," Duo assured him with a kiss, "I'm only going back to get my things from Hilde's house."

Heero smiled at Duo's reassurances and leaned in for another kiss, then opened the pizza box so Duo could get a slice.

Snuggled under the comforter in front of the fire place they ate their pizza and watched the live broadcast of New York City's, New Year's Eve party on the TV.

"You know," Duo said suddenly, "this time last year I never would have dreamed I would be here like this with you." Heero turned so his attention was focused on the other man. "What were you doing last year?"

"I was sleeping," Heero replied honestly. "I was doing double shifts like I did this year and had just spent the evening crammed into a crawlspace trying to find a kitten. By the time I found the thing it was well after midnight and we were both wet and half frozen. I took the cat back to the shelter then I came home, took a shower and slept until noon."

"How did you even end up here anyway?" Duo asked curiously. "I mean, this town is practically off the map."

"After I quit Preventer I traveled around a bit, not really able to settle," Heero explained. "My flight had a layover at the airport here, but before I could make my connection all the fights were grounded due to the weather. It was early October and no one was prepared for it so there were thousands of travelers just stuck. They offered us hotel rooms in the surrounding area and I ended up here."

"You just decided to stay then?" Duo asked.

"No, not at first," Heero replied, "I had been here three or four days when the snow finally let up enough for me to want to venture out, so I went to the Asian market because it was the closest shop to my hotel. They were hiring and on impulse I applied, I was hired almost on the spot."

"How did you end up working for the County then?"

"A few weeks after I started working at the Asian market, the person I had been hired to replace came back so I wasn't needed there anymore but they let me stay on until I found another job. The County was hiring for several public safety positions, animal control seemed challenging enough and the pay was good." Heero laughed "I was considerably over qualified for the position so they wanted me to join the Sheriff's office but I flat out refused."

"Didn't want to be a cop?" Duo teased.

"Hell no, I left Preventer to get away from that, however I do still work for the Department of Public safety. So I carry a weapon and there is still a chance that I may be called to detain or arrest someone, even though I'm technically just an Animal Control officer."

"What…" Duo began then tried again. "What really made you quit Preventer?"

"There was no mission, no J. forcing me to stay. I was only there because I kept going back," Heero replied honestly, "When I realized that I didn't have to be there, I left."

"That's kind of how I felt when I quit too; I basically said 'fuck it' and walked out right after lunch, leaving two open cases and enough unfinished paperwork to bury an elephant. Une wasn't happy about it but I didn't care. Besides, I never really felt safe without you there to watch my back."

Heero set what was left of the pizza aside and settled against Duo's shoulder, "I've missed you but I really think my leaving was the best."

"I know," Duo replied. "Your mind wasn't focused on the job anymore, if you had stayed you could have gotten hurt on a mission or we would have kept arguing and probably ruined our friendship forever." He felt Heero nod. "The time apart has been good for us."

"How did you end up going back to L2?" Heero asked, taking the second to the last slice from the box.

"I had quit Preventer without another job or anything to fall back on. I did have some savings but I knew they wouldn't last long so I had to find another job and ended up working at Mc Donald's."

Heero snickered, nearly choking on his bite.

"Yeah, that was pretty much Hilde's response when I told her," Duo said when he heard Heero laugh, "Once she could breathe again she offered me a job at the yard, the attic room in her house, three meals a day and good pay. She even offered to pay for my ticket to L2, so I accepted. Her husband is an OK kind of guy though he doesn't seem to like me very much."

Heero was surprised, "Why doesn't he like you?"

"I think he thinks that there's more to my relationship with Hilde than there really is," Duo explained, "Plus I think he's a little scared of me, a former Gundam Pilot and all that. But she's family and I love her like a sister and I'd do anything for her, but he doesn't understand. I'm no threat to him unless he tries to hurt her, then I'd kick his ass."

"I'd probably help you," Heero said, he kind of felt the same way towards Lindy.

"A 'you hold him and I punch' sort of thing?" Duo asked with a laugh.

"Exactly," Heero replied.

"Eric would probably piss himself if he knew we were talking about him like this," Duo said as he leaned past Heero to grab the last slice of pizza. He ate a few bites as they watched some popular female artist that neither of them had heard of singing a song on an outdoor stage, wearing nothing more than a bathing suit despite the fact that it was about 12 degrees out.

"Why are all the girls dressed like that?" Heero asked nodding towards the TV; then he took a sip of his Pepsi.

Duo secretly dropped his last pizza crust on the floor for Bear who was lying on his side of the bed; she quickly swallowed it down, just as she had done with all the others.

"Most of the time talent has nothing to do with it; if you don't look the part then no one will buy your stuff."

"It seems to me that catching pneumonia is something a singer would want to avoid."

Duo snorted his Mountain Dew and Heero hurried to grab a napkin for him. "Thanks," Duo said after blowing his nose. He glanced at the clock, just ten minutes to go. "I'm gonna go refill my cup," He said as he slid from the bed. "You want anything else?"

Heero passed him the empty box. "No, I'm all set, but I got you another present," he said, "It's in the tree."

They had given each other several more gifts over the past week so Duo didn't think it strange at all for another gift to appear. Heero had done it first, buying Duo a radio so he had music to listen to during the day. Duo had countered with a first edition of one of Heero's favorite books that he had found by chance in a small shop in town. Then Heero had bought him a few outfits so he had more changes of clothes, in return Duo bought a new microwave for them to share as Heero's old one had looked practically Pre-Colony. After that everything they bought was something they shared, a larger dresser for the bedroom from Heero, more towels and dishes from Duo, so there was enough of everything for two people to share.

Duo simply smiled as he took the pizza box away; throwing it in the trash can in the kitchen. He refilled his soda cup from the large bottle on the counter then walked through the darkened living room to where their Christmas tree still sat, lights twinkling merrily.

Heero had said on, not under so he stepped close, looking over the branches carefully. Then he spotted a small, unwrapped white box near the top just below the star, it was quite small and Duo didn't have a clue as to what could be in it that would be enough for them to share. Leaning in he plucked the tiny box from its resting place, but as he lowered his hand he looked down just in time to see Akuma burst from her hiding place in the tree.

"Geeze!" he shouted as he scrambled backwards, soda sloshing over his hand as he tried to avoid her claws. He thought he was victorious until his legs hit the sofa and he fell back, the biting sting of a single nail catching the skin on his belly, then she was gone, skittering away on the smooth floor.

"Duo, are you okay?" Heero called from the bedroom door.

"Cat got me again; I'll be back in a minute," he called back, "I made a bit of a mess when I spilled my drink."

The hall light clicked on first, then the living room light followed and Heero was there, "Do you need the first aid kit again?"

"No, I don't think it's that bad," Duo replied as he lifted his shirt to look at the damage, finding only a single, tiny puncture above his navel. "If I wanted my belly button pierced I would have gone to a shop," he said sarcastically and lowered his shirt again.

Standing up, Duo set the gift on the side table next to the sofa then went to the kitchen with his now empty cup. Setting it on the counter he grabbed a rag to wipe up the soda only to find that Heero had beat him to it and was already crouched before the tree with a roll of paper towels. They worked together to mop of the mess then Duo filled his cup again, picked up his gift and shut out all the lights before going back to the bedroom.

"Did you open it yet? Heero asked as Duo stripped off his damp shirt and put on a new one.

"Not yet," Duo replied, his voice muffled by the shirt covering his face. "I wanted to wait until I was back in here."

Clothes changed he climbed back in the bed and picked up the box. He was about to open it when Heero suddenly stopped him with a hand on his arm.

"Wait just a moment?" he asked nodding towards the TV. There was less than a minute until midnight.

"Okay," Duo replied.

They sat together quietly until the countdown reached 10 then they counted aloud along with the crowd on television.

"3, 2, 1, Happy New Year!" They said together then leaned in for a kiss as 'Auld Lang Syne' played in the background and the crowd cheered.

Duo didn't notice that Heero had taken the box and opened it until they broke the kiss and he looked down to see a glittering platinum band, very similar to Heero's engagement ring, resting in a blue velvet ring box.

"I thought it would be nice if we each had one," Heero said as he took the ring from the box and slid it on Duo's finger. He placed their left hands together, his own a little darker and just slightly smaller than Duo's; they looked nice together.

Duo entwined their hands then used his free one to gently grasp Heero's chin, turning his face so he could kiss him again.

"Happy New Year, love," he whispered when they stopped for breath, their foreheads touching.

"Happy New Year," Heero replied, and then kissed him again.

Owari


End file.
